Day 12 Done

Tomorrow I get the day off after working 12 days in a row! I am so grateful for my day off. So what have I learned from it? That there is not one ounce of my body that screams work-aholic. I just don't have that  burning desire inside of me to go to work every single day. It seems as the days went on, my guests became more interesting. Like the family who needed "1st Visit" and "Birthday" buttons for their stuffed animals...and it wasn't a joke. Fluffy and Lulu are members of their family, and I graciously welcomed them all to the Animal Kingdom. Or the woman who blamed her husband for getting her pregnant...she is 5 months pregnant with a son that's 9 months. Then there's the person who walks up and asked, "So do you have to pay to go in the park?" I replied, "Yes! And you've come to the right place to do just that!" And then my favorite...the sweet Russian boy. He was about my age, by himself, and maybe even flirting a little. However it is hard to be sure when I only speak English and he speaks Russian. The transaction sounded more like cavemen conversing with a lot of awkward laughing, nodding, and a whole lot of smiling. After I gave him his tickets that I think/hope he was asking for, he smiles at me as he searches for the right words to say. I smile back as he gives me 2 thumbs up and says, "YOU.....GOOD....WOMAN?" I laughed so hard and said, "You good man."

This is how happy I am when I finish working.

So enough about working forever...I was able to squeeze in a couple fun night outings during the chaos and exhaustion. Katelyn and I went on a much needed date to Bahama Breeze. I ordered salmon and it was the best I had ever eaten. I was in heaven and went home very happy.

Date night!

I also conquered the Animal Kingdom. With the company of Emily, Travis, Roberto, Katie, and Jess, I have now done every attraction at the Animal Kingdom. We had a great time, and got completely soaked on Kali River Rapids. While riding the Wildlife Express Train, I got a special and embarrassing shout-out from my good friend David who was the conductor! Oh joy.

The gang after Kali Rapids

Emily and Travis. Being goofy with the fans turned into a photo shoot.

Thank you to all of the amazing friends I have made here, and all of my friends and family back home who keep in touch. I love you all and I am so blessed to be surrounded by all you wonderful people. Thank You for your love. I hope you feel my love I have for you.

April Showers Bring May Flowers

April started with a few storms, some kinda scary, but now it's gorgeous, and the flowers are here. I have been working more hours than ever before, as well as trying to get the most out of my last few weeks here. So I'm getting very tired, and as always BUSY! You may think all I do is fun, but let me tell you I work a lot, I just don't write about it cause it's kinda boring with the exception of the crazies! And this week, I have had a few creepers-not so fun. I also have had guests take pictures of me more often this week-kinda awkward, but whatevs. So now here's the latest.

Mickey and Minnie have a new home in Town Square Theatre, since Toontown is now gone. Instead, Fantasyland  is doubling in size which I'm so excited for! The plans for it are fabulous and now you can see Belle & Beast's castle peeking over the fence.

This is what is known as the kitchen sink. It's about 8 scoops of ice cream, an entire can of whipped cream, brownies, cookies, cake, candy bars, sprinkles, cherries, you name it! And it is delivered in a cute "kitchen sink" at the Beaches & Cream diner. The roomies went out to conquer this beauty, and we did a number, however by the end we had a puddle of melted ness. You gotta eat quickly!

The Beach Boys are back! Last night Katelyn and I went to Universal for their concert. Not sure how many of the originals are left, maybe 2 or 3, but they sounded awesome and it was fun concert. The crowd was a large diverse mix. I especially enjoyed the older couples, and we're talking 70's, who danced their hearts out with their beer in hand!

 

Emily turns 23! April 16th was Emily's birthday, so we all went out to her favorite restaurant, The Tavern, in Magic Kingdom @ Liberty Square. It was a fun birthday party, delicious meal, and a Magical Day! :)

Cinderella's Castle 

Katelyn, Emily, and I work on Easter, so we put on out Easter dresses and went to church tonight instead! I love us!

SeaWorld

My first trip to SeaWorld in Orlando! Katelyn and Ashley joined me on this adventure. It was a great day, but by the end we were exhausted. Theme parks are tiring!!! As well as the sun. It has been very HOT lately. I don't know how people can go day after day to the parks. It was fun to mix it up though and see some life from the ocean! Manatees are cute, dolphins are awesome, and Katelyn has decided to have a pet Killer Whale in her backyard after she marries into some money! Here's a couple pics:


At the start of the day...you wouldn't want to see us at the end.



The dolphins were so playful! I even got to touch them!

Shamu!

Craziest coaster I have ever ridden! Manta

3 Months

Today marks my 3 Month anniversary of living in Orlando. I have kept extremely busy trying to take in everything that’s offered here, so the time has flown by. I only have one month left of my internship, and then I will have about 2 weeks to enjoy here with a couple of my roomies. During that time, I will embark on my first cruise that I decided to reward myself with for graduating college. Sounds like a good plan to me! Katelyn won some Orlando Magic tickets for today’s game against the Bulls, so I joined her. If you are a Jazz fan, then you realize that many of our players now play for the Bulls so I felt right at home. I spent much of my time admiring Kyle Korver. When is that boy going to realize we are perfect for each other? If only he just met me!

Best seats ever!

Memories of the Jazz. I miss my crew

My love shooting a 3 for me...he made it!

Tackling Epcot

Today was just one of those great days in life. It began after a lovely night’s rest, with a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, chocolate milk, thunder, lightning, and rain. Rain = people to don’t to go to the theme parks = my opportunity to tackle Epcot. I made a To-Do List (imagine that) for my Florida experience. One of the bullet points of that list is to do every attraction at all 4 theme parks at Disneyworld. Last week, Ashley and I finished Magic Kingdom. So today Katelyn and Ashley joined me on my quest to finish Epcot. I had a lot of work to do, but I am proud to say 2 parks have been checked off! Some of my favorite highlights…

·         Living with the Land: An impressive ride that takes you through deserts, rainforests, and farmlands. Then it takes you through these real greenhouses full of vegetables, fruits, fish, and edible flowers. I loved it and now I just want my own cute backyard with a garden!

·         The Circle of Life: Great little film showing the world’s ecosystems and bringing the message of conservation with Lion King narrators and music. Another hidden treasure I now love.

·         World Showcase adventures: Some of the countries have short films and rides, so we wondered through each country which really makes me want to travel the world! I especially enjoyed The Canada short film and the Norway boat ride. I might just love Canadians and wouldn’t even mind marrying one! Haha Also, I truly appreciate the cute French boys working in the little shop in France who were singing and dancing “Just Dance” by Lady Gaga. I’ve never heard that sung with a French accent, but it was hilarious!

The night ended with Emily meeting up with us at Katelyn’s softball game and dinner at one of my favorite places, Sweet Tomatoes! To finish it all off, I was graced with two sweet phone calls from my Anne and Ben friends. I have the most beautiful friends inside and out and I love to hear their love. Like I said…Great Day!

Dance Party with Ben a couple years ago.

Halloween Party with Anne this past year.

Watching Tangled (Me, Katelyn, Ash, Em)



failed jumping shot



Mail!

I kinda missed writing last week, and there a couple of things I have to tell you. First of all, I was able to go “backstage” at the Animal Kingdom and feed one of our black rhinoceros. Her name is Kit and my entire hand was literally in her mouth. I fed her these little biscuit things which she loved! My hand was covered in drool but it was such a neat experience! I want to be an animal keeper now.

 Second, Emily and I took Kateyln to her first Festival of the Lion King show! It is my favorite show at the Animal Kingdom and Emily got us VIP seats on the front row(she is dating one of the performers) and Timon kissed me (well all three of us) during the show.

Third, and lastly, I had the best mail day ever on Saturday! I love mail, so if you ever feel like sending me a letter, my address is 8220 Patterson Woods Dr. #4206 Orlando, FL 32821. I got the pictures from my Africa Trek from Disney, the sweetest letter from my grandmother, and a bundle of letters from my dear friend Rachel. Rachel Smith is one of my best friends who is serving an LDS mission in Brasil. Our letters kept losing their way to one another, so I was very excited to get a bundle of letters and pictures, and I can’t wait to see her May!